I recently returned to Oracle after a long absence—and a
good chunk of that time was spent outside of the tech industry. The last OpenWorld I attended
was in 2002. And back then, it wasn’t
even called Oracle OpenWorld—it was simply OracleWorld. So, here I am having
boomeranged back, and wondering if Oracle OpenWorld 2013 is basically the same conference I attended over a decade ago.

It most definitely is not.

The sheer size of this event is mindboggling—a physical
wonderland of modern technology and attention-grabbing showmanship under
multiple roofs. Impressive are the
myriad exhibitors located across several buildings, with several booths standing out in terms of design and production. I honestly cannot recall booths in the past exhibiting such creativity. From a
Japanese-accented exhibit with bonsai trees and little rock sculptures to a
peewee golf course where attendees can test their skill to a condensed version
of the classic Volkswagen minibus outfitted with flatscreen monitor and leather
sofa that functions as a cozy meeting room, there is much to see and try.

The power, passion, and creativity behind Oracle OpenWorld
2013 can clearly be felt as I absorb all there is to see and do, and the tens of thousands of people taking part in it all. Memories of my last
Oracle World fade by comparison.

I’m Ora and I need your help—disaster has struck the Acme Co. data center! Aging, inefficient servers have left the data center unable to respond to changing business needs. Tasked with increasing application performance, accelerating deployment speed, and consolidating multiple systems, Acme’s IT Manager called the best in the business—me, Ora, the SPARC Runner—to help him out.

But I can’t do this all by myself. I need help navigating through five exciting, but treacherous data center levels. Help me jump, dash, and slide through complex and inefficient IT environments so I can:

Accelerate performance with the world’s fastest microprocessor

Increase speed with servers and operating systems that are co-engineered to do more together